The on-screen power struggles of Game of Thrones may be finding their way to the real-life world of the board game business. HBO appears ready to stake a claim on product names beginning with “Game of…”. Asserting likely “confusion, mistake, or deception”, HBO has filed its opposition to the registration of a trademark for a board game called “Game of Monarchs“. The game’s publisher, B&B Biz Corp, declined my request for comment but did file an answer with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, stating its belief that the “marks are dissimilar.” [OK, neither of those is much of an argument.]

The cable network, having requested an extension, looks set to do the same for the Game of Phones card game, and has already filed against the Game of Trolls video game registration submitted by DreamWorks Animation. A settlement over a “Game of Drones” saw that registration withdrawn in February, however, a new one by a different entity was submitted just last month.